Season one of "Mr. Mercedes" -- based on the book trilogy by author Stephen King -- ended with disturbed killer Brady Hartsfield (Harry Treadaway) being beaten almost to death by Holly Gibney (Justine Lupe) after an intense confrontation at an art gala left retired detective Bill Hodges (Brendan Gleeson) suffering from a heart attack and Brady's co-worker Lou Linklatter (Breeda Wool) stabbed by the man she used to call a friend. Stephen King has also explained the three levels of terror.

With a few of the main characters injured, and Brady seemingly down for the count, the biggest challenge for Season 2 focuses on how to keep Brady a part of the action and how the afflicted characters deal with the fallout.

The "Mr. Mercedes" Season 2 premiere laid a bit of the groundwork for this season with a time jump and new characters added to the mix. I also sat down with the cast and creators of the series at San Diego Comic-Con last month and learned what we can expect this season.

'Mr. Mercedes' premiere recap

The Season 2 premiere of "Mr. Mercedes," titled "Missing You," picks up where we left off in the season one finale as Hodges and Brady are both rushed to the hospital. The retired detective survives his heart attack as Brady undergoes brain surgery. We are quickly introduced to two new characters: Dr. Felix Babineau (Jack Huston), Brady's neurosurgeon, and Assistant District Attorney Antonio Montez (Max Hernandez).

The ADA makes it clear he wants Brady to not only live but to wake up so that he can prosecute him in court, and Babineau's ego is onboard to make the miraculous happen. With the encouragement of his newly pregnant wife, Cora (Tessa Ferrer), Babineau begins injecting Brady with experimental drugs that will alter his brain activity.

Over time, Hodges begins exercising and cleaning himself up to recover from his heart attack and is the only one who visits Brady in the hospital. As months go by, he sits in the room patiently waiting to see if the killer will ever wake up, but he doesn't.

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In the meantime, Hodges and Holly have opened a private investigative agency called Finders Keepers. After the sudden death of Hodges friend and protege Detective Pete Dixon (Scott Lawrence) due to a heart condition, Holly moves in so Hodges won't have to grieve alone.

As Hodges works to maintain better relationships with the friends and family in his life, such as his neighbor Ida (Holland Taylor) and his formerly estranged daughter Allie, he can't quite escape the unhealthy bond between him and Brady. Hodges dreams of the killer, envisioning them both at Pete's grave in the cemetery as Brady taunts Hodges and tells the P.I. "I'm what keeps you alive." After waking up, the grieving Hodges comes close to killing Brady by pulling the plug on his breathing machine but decides against it. He's going to probably wish he hadn't, though, since Babineau has upped the dosage of Brady's experimental drug cocktail allowing the killer to "wake up" in his own mind, now aware of what's going on around him.

'Mr. Mercedes' exclusive SDCC 2018 interviews

We didn't get a chance to see Lou in the Season 2 premiere of "Mr. Mercedes," but thanks to Wool we know that the character will be suffering from emotional and physical trauma after surviving Brady's attack in last year's finale. During the SDCC interviews that I participated in, Wool describes how Lou will be struggling with PTSD, including survivor's guilt, being betrayed violently by someone she thought was a close friend, and a lack of closure. The actress also teased certain characters interacting more this year, such as Lou and Hodges.

Director and executive producer Jack Bender discusses how the series had to bring in some elements of the third book of King's trilogy for this season, as well as certain scenes with Brady to make them work on screen. Bender explains that this season will explore "the power of the brain" and will creatively examine the aspects of the mind we "know so little about." He also reveals that his next Stephen King project will be adapting "The Outsider" as a limited series.

Jack Huston introduces his new character of Dr. Babineau in "Mr. Mercedes." The neurosurgeon is described as an ambitious doctor who believes there "might be a bit of a gray area when it comes to ethics" within medicine. Huston explains how Babineau will be using Brady as his guinea pig, which will lead to unforeseen consequences for everyone else as the doctor tries to play God.

Max Hernandez, who portrays ADA Montez, describes how his character is looking to climb the ranks politically and socially and wants to use the Trial of Brady Hartsfield as his initial stepping stone. The only problem is that you can't convict a man in a coma, so the ADA is as determined for Brady to wake up as Dr. Babineau is, though for two entirely different reasons. The actor also teases his "contentious" relationship with Hodges this season.

Justine Lupe talks about the new confidence Holly has developed while working closely with Hodges. She dives into the dynamic between her character with Hodges as one that gives Holly permission to be completely herself. The relationship and their dynamic changes throughout season two, allowing the characters to "grow with each other." Lupe also explains how Holly will be trying to balance Hodges' well-being with the well-being of their business as the Brady mystery unfolds this season.

In a recent Season 2 Facebook live stream, Bender also said that fans should expect to see a third season of the series. While a renewal has not yet been confirmed, Bender remains confident that the story will continue so that King's trilogy can play out onscreen completely.

'Mr. Mercedes' episode 2x02

In this week's episode, titled "Let's Go Roaming," Dr. Babineau notices that Brady's brain activity is spiking as the murderer uses Sadie, a nurse, to stalk Hodges throughout the hospital. Now that the inner Brady is awake, the audience will get the chance to explore just what exactly Babineau's experimental drugs have done to the killer's mind and how everyone is now at risk.

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